Kandrakar '99: Dark Wizard and the House of Shadow Lords
The stone floor of the grand hall was cold, but not as cold as the spite in Narissa’s voice.
"Look at you," she cackled, her shadowy cloak billowing around her like a living bruise. "Powerful. Dangerous. Yet one defeat turns you into sulking children! If you cannot handle mere palace guards, can you really take on Egen? Flies never see the web until it’s too late."
Her laughter echoed off the marble pillars, sharply cutting through the heavy silence. Scattered across the floor, bruised and breathless, were some of the most formidable forces in the realm: Will Vandom, clutching the dimming Heart of Kandrakar; her siblings, Queen Elyon and Prince Phobos, forced into an uncomfortable alliance; the Paper Sisters, their bladed parchment torn to shreds; and the legendary martial duo, Shadow Skill and Diaz.
For all their combined might, the massive depletion of magic across the realm had knocked the Holy City completely out of balance. Their spells fizzled into sparks, their martial arts lacked their usual mystical gravity, and a routine clash with royal guards had left them humbled in the dirt.
"Save your breath, Narissa," Elyon spat, rising to her feet with royal defiance, though her knees trembled. "We don't need your mockery. We need a way through."
"What you need is focus," Phobos hissed, wiping a trickle of blood from his lip as he glared at his sister, then at Narissa. "Without the magic flowing through the Holy City's Leylines, our strength is reduced to mere parlor tricks. And while we squabble and bleed, Xayden pays the price."
A heavy silence fell at the mention of King Xayden—the sharp-dressed, unflappable ruler known across the cosmos as Mr. Gentleman. He was currently trapped in a slumber of decaying dark magic, fading by the hour.
Will pulled herself up, leaning against a collapsed pillar. The stone of Kandrakar in her palm flickered feebly, pulsing like a failing heart. "She's right about one thing," Will said quietly, looking around at the battered group. "We’re letting frustration beat us before Egen even steps onto the battlefield. We came here for Lunalis’ Voice. It's the only relic pure enough to break Xayden's curse and restore the city's balance."
Diaz grunted, adjusting his gauntlets while Shadow Skill stretched out a tense shoulder. "Finding a voice in a city that's gone mute isn't easy, Keeper," Diaz muttered. "We've searched the sanctuary vaults. Nothing."
Narissa stepped forward, her eyes glowing with malicious amusement. "Because you look with your eyes, foolish children. You seek a physical relic, a golden trumpet or an ancient horn. Lunalis’ Voice is not a thing to be held." She pointed a long, clawed finger toward the center of the hall, where a grand, dust-covered stone pool sat completely dry. "It is a resonance. And it requires power to wake—power you currently lack because you are too busy wallowing in your own fleeting failure."
Will stared at the dry pool, then looked at Elyon and Phobos. A faint light sparkled deep within the heart of Kandrakar. "We don't need full magic," Will said, a dark smile replacing her exhaustion. "We just need to stop acting like flies."
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